Monday, August 22, 2011

Becoming a Triathlete

Did you have a wonderful weekend? I sure did! Friday was our first high school swim meet and Emily and the rest of the team did awesome. It was my first meet as a Neenah High School coach. Yahoo!

Bright and early Saturday morning, I did the bike portion of the Waupaca Triathlon (20 miles). I started doing triathlons about 10 years ago. After injuring my foot during my half-ironman in 2006, however, my triathlon career came to an end. I can no longer do the run, and while I do not miss running (at all), I sure do miss the thrill of completing a full triathlon. There's something about doing an open water swim, running soaking wet into the transition area, shifting to bike clothes, strapping on shoes and a helmet and then hitting the open road, only to circle back to the transition area to jump off the bike and run on wobbly legs to hang up the bike and tie on running shoes. By the time the run is over my whole body would be sweaty and salty and fatigued but I would feel like Superman. Seriously. Completing a triathlon is the best natural high in the whole, wide world. Saturday I teamed up with one of my former swimmers, Morgan, who did an awesome job on the swim portion, and a friend, Jane, who rocked the run. We finished in 6th place, and besides a little snafu at mile 11 of the bike portion, everything went well.

As fun as it was to be part of a tri team, my very favorite part of Saturday was watching my neighbor, Christine, finish her first triathlon. Christine decided a while back that she was determined to complete a triathlon this summer. Late last winter, Christine asked me if I'd help her out a bit with her swim. Saturday she swam and exited the water like a pro and then went on to complete the bike and run. I got to see her big smile as she crossed the finish line. She gave us all 2 thumbs up as she ran by. It was one of life's little magical moments. There's nothing like seeing someone accomplish a big goal, is there?

I totally remember what it was like to cross that first finish line. I remember thinking that all the training and hard work was totally worth it. I'm positive that Christine feels the exact same thing.

1 comment:

Wow, I read your post and my mouth just dropped open describing the triathlon.. I am so impressed! What you have just described would've sent me to an early grave (no joke) but I can sense how much you enjoy it. So inspiring!Thank you for your sweet comment on my blog - your blog is super cute..I'm subscribing and can't wait to see what else you do :)